Last winter the American Academy of Pediatrics gave a presentation to Congress with the above title to show our legislators the progress made by pediatric researchers.
Interesting, three of the seven achievements are parent centered and controlled. Today we’ll discuss the first great achievement and how important it is for parents to take advantage of it. We will look at the other six in the next couple of weeks.
Preventing diseases with life-saving immunizations.
In 2008, about 450,000 children worldwide under 5 years old died from diarrhea caused by vaccine-preventable rotavirus infection. Prior to vaccine development and widespread use in the US (2006), rotavirus caused 20-60 deaths each year in U.S. children under 5 years of age, including one of my infant cousins. Thousands of other infants were hospitalized and treated with I.V. fluids. Try to imagine how many children will be saved when this vaccine is used around the world.
Hemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) is a bacteria that causes several different disease in children younger than 5 years of age. The worse one is brain and spinal cord infection (meningitis), but it also causes lung infection (pneumonia), and severe throat infection (epiglottitis), all of which can and often are fatal. (This bacteria is not related to the Human Influenza Virus A and B which cause common flu.)
The immunization against H. flu. has been called the greatest medical advance in the past 100 years. Prior to its development in 1987 and its consistent use in 1990, about 20,000 U.S. children had Hib infections every year, and up to 1,200 children died. Many of the survivors suffered permanent physical and/or mental disabilities. When I started practice every kid with a fever had to be seen right away to be sure they did not have H. flu. meningitis. Parents and doctors lost many nights of sleep because of this disease.
Today the number of kids who contract Hib has been reduced by more than 99%. Each year fewer than 50 kids in the US develop H. flu. disease; about 5 die. Many of today’s pediatricians have never seen a child with this disease. Kids who develop this infection failed to receive the Hib vaccine.
The AAP people only talked about these two vaccines, but I would like to add a third. This vaccine can stop 90% of cervical cancer, 90% of Vulvar cancer, 85 & of Vaginal cancer, 90-95% of anal cancer, and 90% of genital warts. It can also reduce the risk of most oral and throat cancer – just how great that reduction will be is still being studied, but it will be something like 50-80%.
Of course you know I’m talking about the new Gardasil 9. It’s the next generation of the anti-cancer vaccine Gardasil 4. It prevents not only 4 of the HPV strains, but 9, making it so very much better.
If your kids from age 9-26 haven’t received this vaccine take them right out to get it. No, it won’t turn them into prostitutes or other promiscuous teens. It will prevent them from getting horrid diseases from a spouse who was already sexually experienced when your child met him. These viruses can still be alive when your virgin child becomes an adult, and marries him.
Best part about all three of these vaccines is they are free of any side effects except for occasional swelling and redness at the injection site and occasional head ache the day or two after injection. Which of the diseases above is not worth that price? And what could be worse that seeing your child suffer with or die from a disease that you could have prevented with a simple shot?